July 2026

Dear Friends and Supporters,

At Upasuaji International, our mission has always been to remove barriers to surgical and medical access for patients as well as remove barriers for surgeons and physicians to receive advanced training and have access to the clinical equipment they need. That mission has evolved and grown over the years and currently we are expanding and growing quickly in many different ways.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read through these updates, even though there is a lot to read!

What you see here represents only a small glimpse into our work at Upasuaji International. Thanks to our dedicated team and community partners, our programs are growing faster than ever.

As we scale up to meet these healthcare needs, we cannot do it alone. We urgently need your partnership, resources, and support to sustain this rapid growth and reach the communities that need us most. Thank you for standing with us.

Warmly,

Lynsay

Executive Director, Upasuaji International

Launching East Africa’s First Multidisciplinary Down Syndrome Clinic

We are incredibly excited to announce a huge clinical milestone: the launch of the Upasuaji Down Syndrome Clinic.

Historically, families in East Africa navigating a Down syndrome diagnosis have faced a fragmented, confusing medical landscape without having a single clinic where patients can access the care they need as well as a streamlined referral process that changes everything. This is East Africa's very first dedicated multidisciplinary Down syndrome clinic—and to our knowledge the first of its kind in Africa.

By bringing pediatricians, surgeons, speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, and parent-led care coordinators together, we are providing families with a holistic medical home. Instead of crisis-driven care, our clinic provides proactive medical surveillance, tracking cardiovascular, thyroid, and developmental health to ensure that persons with Down syndrome can lead long, thriving lives of absolute dignity.

Dr. Daniel Ocen Lukwiya, is a pediatrician and child health specialist who serves on the Board of Directors for Upasuaji International and heads its Down Syndrome Clinic. An active member of the Uganda Paediatric Association and the Uganda Medical & Dental Practitioners Council, he holds a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from Kampala International University and a Master of Medicine in Paediatrics and Child Health from Makerere University. He brings extensive clinical leadership to the role, drawing from his background as the former Lead Paediatrician at TMR International Hospital. Fun fact, he also stars in "Now We Know".

A Note from Diana:

At Upasuaji Down Syndrome center, we are committed to supporting persons with Down syndrome and their families.

In December we had an event at our place that we themed Sibling day. We did this to help siblings of children with Down syndrome understand what their siblings are going through and how they can stand up for them in the community they live in but also celebrate them for their contribution in supporting their siblings with Down syndrome. We combined it with a Christmas party for our Down syndrome families and we had 43 families attend.

Today we have grown to over 60 families, each of these has been supported in one way or another through counseling, health support, educational support in terms of guidance to where they can take their children for school.

We want to say a huge thank you to everyone that supports what we do. We love and appreciate you so much.

The Premiere of "Now We Know"

This past March, we celebrated World Down Syndrome Day with the premiere of our mini-documentary, Now We Know.

Designed to educate and break down cultural stigma surrounding Down syndrome in East Africa where the condition is too often misunderstood as a "curse". Interweaving the clinical expertise of Dr. Daniel Lukwiya with the personal lived experiences of local families, Now We Know serves as a testament to truth. It proves that when a community is equipped with facts rather than fear, we can move from simple tolerance to genuine inclusion. If you haven't yet seen it, click button below to watch on YouTube.

Watch Now We Know

Our Newest Documentary, A Man Like Sam

Building on the momentum of Now We Know, our media team has completed production on our newest documentary short: A Man Like Sam.

This film follows the journey of Samuel Mugabi, a young Ugandan man with Down syndrome who has defied societal limitations to build an independent life. Today, Sam is a beloved, highly capable office assistant at Upasuaji International.

In A Man Like Sam, Sam opens up in interviews about his personal ambitions and his pride in his professional autonomy. A Man Like Sam is currently being submitted to international film festivals. Our world premiere will be in Brittany, France in early August and we will be premiering A Man Like Sam in Uganda at the end of August and looking at a later US premiere in Chicago. We cannot wait to share screening dates with you soon!

Medical Grant Program

We strongly believe no family should ever be forced to choose between financial survival and saving their child's life.

Our Medical Grants Program serves as a vital co-investment safety net, step-funding specialized pediatric cardiac care, life-saving medications, and diagnostic imaging for families who fall through the gaps of the traditional healthcare system. Rather than replacing the family’s agency, these grants honor and support their incredible resilience. Currently we have over 40 children on medical grants and that number grows daily.

Safeguarding Post-Op Care: The Cardiac Passport

For children with congenital heart disease, surgery is critical but is only one part of the healing journey. To ensure these children do not fall through the cracks of a fragmented healthcare system, we have officially launched the Cardiac Passport.

The Cardiac Passport is a physical, patient-held medical record designed for post-operative surveillance as well as a contact point for local providers in a patients home area to be able to reach out to the care team managing their cardiac care. It translates complex surgical details into a clear, accessible logbook that families carry to local clinical providers.

The Upasuaji Research Fellowship together with NYMC

To drive sustainable healthcare systems, we must foster cutting-edge clinical research directly where it is needed most. This quarter, we are incredibly proud to highlight the Upasuaji Research Fellowship, run in proud conjunction with New York Medical College (NYMC).

This highly specialized fellowship focuses strictly on clinical and surgical-focused research. This collaboration equips emerging medical minds to design, implement, and analyze rigorous surgical data, establishing new baselines for patient outcomes and building a robust, evidence-based roadmap for regional clinical care in East Africa.

Inlcusive Pathways

Inclusive Pathways is a targeted initiative meeting a critical community need for children with Down syndrome who have long been overlooked in the Ugandan education system. Rather than establishing our own independent school network, Upasuaji International is partnering with existing local schools to launch integrated classroom pilots featuring low student-to-teacher ratios. This collaborative approach provides tailored learning environments that dismantle community stigma and guide students toward literacy, numeracy, and lifelong independence—creating a scalable, sustainable blueprint designed to be duplicated across the region if successful.

"All Are Able" Vocational Project

As children grow, our commitment to them must grow too. We are incredibly proud to spotlight the "All Are Able" Vocational Project, spearheaded by our wonderful colleague, Linda.

Recognizing that transition into adulthood can be incredibly isolating for individuals with intellectual disabilities, Linda has designed a hands-on workspace focused on vocational training and professional dignity. Through "All Are Able," young adults will learn valuable, self-sustaining skills, including tailoring, crafts, and hospitality, empowering them to transition towards independence.

Linda is currently seeking funding for these projects, if you are interested in this please reach out.

Expansion into Tanzania

Although we have worked in Tanzania doing surgical outreaches for many years, and developed the first burn center in Mwanza, in fact Upasuaji was first borne on the banks of Lake Victoria in Tanzania, only now are we in the final stages of establishing our physical footprint and regional office in Tanzania led by our amazing collegue Dr. Amol Kulkarni.

Expanding Our Clinical Team: A Call for Investment

As we expand our impact through East Africa, our next step is to continue building a comprehensive, on-site specialized clinical team. We are actively seeking significant funding to hire a dedicated Speech-Language Pathologist, a Physical Therapist, a specialized Nurse, and a clinical Case Manager. These roles will allow us to provide integrated clinical care, physical and communication therapies, and structured family guidance under one roof. Securing the resources for these specialized positions is essential to meeting the profound bottleneck of need in our community, ensuring that every child receives the proactive, coordinated, and life-changing care they deserve from day one. We currently need to find an extra $5000 a month to fund this clinical care as well as the Down Syndrome Clinic. Though we will eventually move to a true clinic model where patients will be charged a very small fee for services, currently all services are offered free for Down Syndrome Centre children.

Donate Today

How YOU Can Help Us Moving Forward

Every milestone detailed in this newsletter belongs to you. Whether you are funding a medical grant, supporting East Africa's first Down syndrome clinic, or enabling our expansion into Tanzania, you are actively proving that all are able, and everyone is worth the investment.

As we look toward the launch of our first regional fundraising gala in 2027, we ask that you consider making a recurring monthly contribution to keep our programs fully funded.

Donate Today: Visit www.upasuaji.com/donate to support our medical and educational funds.
Share the Story: Forward this newsletter to a friend, or follow us on Instagram, TikTok, X and Facebook @Upasuaji-International to help us change the narrative.

With gratitude and hope,

The Upasuaji International Team

info@upasuaji.com | www.upasuaji.com

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